


Death Warmed Over

by Primarina (sherlockstummy)



Category: Game Grumps
Genre: Caretaking, Food, Food Kink, Gen, Mild Hurt/Comfort
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-09-26
Updated: 2017-09-26
Packaged: 2019-01-05 15:54:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,525
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12193002
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sherlockstummy/pseuds/Primarina
Summary: Dan's stomach issues cause him problems on the road and after he comes home.





	Death Warmed Over

Dan’s stomach ached. 

The last leg of the Rock Hard Tour had been great, just as he expected it would. The crowds were amazing, his performances just seemed to get better and better, and he and Brian were really starting to vibe with TWRP. It was awesome.

But because of further stomach complications that had arisen literally weeks before the final two stretches of the tour, he could no longer eat in the evenings before bed. Which really sucked when, after the adrenaline began to wind down, all the thousands of calories he’d burned (or so it seemed…yeesh) began to affect him. Because just like any sort of physical activity, dancing and singing at a high-energy show for four hours can really make you hungry.

Carb-loading was great, but that only went so far in the end, and Danny found himself begrudgingly reaching for Powerade, Gatorade, or other sugary sweet electrolyte drinks instead of his usual LaCroix just to soothe his hunger. He considered himself lucky during the rare cases where he’d just pass out after sitting with his steam for an hour. Memorably enough, he’d actually fallen asleep while doing it, and woke up to Doctor Sung shaking him gently and urging him to go to bed.

Dan knew he’d actually lost weight while on tour. Heck, he knew for a fact that they all did! Even Havve Hogan, who sat down for most of the shows due to being a drummer. (But Danny had to remind himself that Hogan was sweating and drumming, too, even if he was sitting down.) Even with the tour two days behind him, though, he was still ravenous. And, much to his embarrassment, others were starting to get an earful.

~

Danny yawned, slumping down into the couch and sprawling like a ragdoll, stretching out his legs, which were cramping from being curled up towards his chest, his usual Grumping position. To be fair, Grumps was an easy transition back into his regular working routine. Sure, it was still a performance of one kind or another, but he didn’t have to sing or dance or pretend to be sexy. He didn’t even have to play the game, more often than not! Nope, he could sit and relax and chat with Arin and the lovelies, and not worry so much about what he looked like, or even if his voice sounded in tip-top condition. (Some of the lovelies rather liked it when his voice was hoarse. It probably fueled their impure thoughts about what he and Arin got up to when the mics weren’t recording, but whatever.)

Arin had to go take a shit, so Dan had at least twenty minutes to himself. Ah. Peace and quiet. Except for the muted music of the game they were currently playing. Eh. Quiet enough. Dan was used to falling asleep to a light buzz of noise, from the rumbling of the bus’s wheels, the soft whoosh of traffic, the soft murmurs of conversation, an occasional laugh that was a little bit too loud. Honestly, it kinda reminded him that all of this was real, that he really was living his dream.

It would’ve been a nice little meditative nap, except…

_Rurrr…euuurrrrgh…_

Danny’s brow furrowed and he sighed deeply, running a hand over the flat plane of his stomach. Meouch had been teasing him during tour that he was going to slip out of the Spandex one of these days, and though the ribbing was gentle and meant not to be taken seriously, Dan admitted to himself that it was a legitimate fear he had. There were parts of the costume that already didn’t fit as well as they should, not to mention he could’ve sworn that he had to make use of more of his belt this morning…that he’d had to switch to a cloth belt because his leather ones weren’t tight enough, even on the smallest hole…

_Euuurrrrrh…_

Dan wished that he could blame something Arin said for suddenly making him hungry, but the truth is that he’d been getting steadily hungrier for a while. He and Arin had had some truly delicious sushi around lunchtime, but that was fucking ages ago, and besides, because of his concert appetite, he’d been hungry again almost instantly, mourning the fact that Arin had playfully stolen one of his rolls, because Dan sometimes didn’t finish his food.

It had taken a lot of self-control for him to hold back his protestations. He didn’t want Arin worrying about him. And after the deed was done, he wouldn’t want Arin feeling guilty. He wouldn’t have known what it was like…

Dan winced, curling up into the arm of the couch as a spike of intense hunger shot through his stomach. He used to think hunger pangs were called “hunger pains” when he was a kid, and he’d say that was pretty accurate right now. Oh God, what he wouldn’t do for a turkey club on wheat with some mayonnaise…fuck, that would really hit the spot right now. And then, he wouldn’t be so goddamn hungry…

“Hey, man. Sorry about that.” The door to the Grump room opened and Arin appeared, making Dan jump and sit up.

“Dude, you fuckin almost made me piss myself!” Dan accused, laughing slightly, though it sounded a bit hollow to his ears.

Arin sat down on the couch, relaxing and laughing himself as he picked up the controller. He glanced over at Dan, and mirth turned to worry. “You doin okay, Dan?” He asked, his voice filled with light concern, a tone that made him sound very much like his wife.

Danny nodded, despite the twisting and groaning in his stomach. He curled up again, hoping to muffle its complaints from the mics and from Arin. “Yeah, man, I’m good. Let’s keep going.”

~

“I need a break, man,” Dan said after they’d done two more episodes. He was starting to get lightheaded, his brain deciding to shut off in the middle of forming a sentence, not to mention that he was absolutely starving, the ache in his stomach not unlike the kind he’d felt on tour, that desperate desire to replenish much-needed calories. He thought he’d be able to quell the monster once he got home, but slipping back into his usual routine wasn’t helping much, if at all.

If anything, he almost felt hungrier now than he had on tour. As if everything was taunting him.

Arin leaned over the couch, looking Dan over with a critical eye. The lanky man looked tired, the bags under his eyes and lack of color in his cheeks spoke of losing sleep while trying to adjust to not only long nights of rock, but also changing time zones and unhelpful bouts of leftover adrenaline. 

He was no stranger to it. Starbomb had been part of the tour before his being sick and real-life issues got in the way. But this was bigger than just pure exhaustion. Danny looked thinner, and he’d been unusually quiet, even putting on his game face for the fans.

“Yeah, you look it, dude,” Arin replied, letting the worry coat his voice. Dan was surprisingly receptive to caretaking, so Arin was always sure to gently nudge his hardworking friend in the right direction when he really needed it. “You can go lie down in my office for a bit if you want. I gotta hunt around for some batteries for this controller, anyway.” He held up the Wii Remote, swinging it around aimlessly in the air.

Dan chuckled. “Cool. Think I might take you up on that offer.” He desperately wanted food, his stomach begging him to give it a little bit of love, but he was just so tired as well…his eyelids had been drooping since they started the second episode. If he could take a quick cat nap, he’d feel better, and then they could get on with the episodes.

And then dinner. Something super heavy and full of carbs. Bread with a side of bread, cause, fuck it, why not?

Dan got up and toddled off towards Arin’s office. The head Grump had a sweet and peaceful set up, and the older man loved it. It was so very…Arin. Simple on the outside, but lots of personality inside. He closed the door behind him, smiling in silent greeting at all the little amibos and toys on the shelves. 

Danny made a bee line for the little couch across from Arin’s desk. If he didn’t know any better, he’d hazard a guess that Arin put this in here just for him…but he wasn’t about to make any assumptions. After all, Arin was always two steps ahead of everyone with his thought processes. It could be for any number of purposes.

The exhausted musician flopped down onto the soft surface of the sofa. He could hear the muffled sounds of the office through the wall, and the low hum of the computer sitting on Arin’s desk. The atmosphere was familiar, comforting, and Dan was too tired to resist the call of sleep for much longer.

~

Arin did his battery hunting rather robotically. His mind kept straying to Dan. Something didn’t sit quite right with him about his friend. He was missing something, a vital clue. The worst part is, it was probably staring him right in the face.

It wasn’t unusual for Danny to look drained after the tours finished, but within a few days, sometimes even in a few hours, he perked right up again, and returned to being his usual dorky, human ray of sunshine-y self. 

Was it just Arin’s imagination, or did Dan seem not to be recovering at all? He even seemed to be getting worse.

Danny had been quiet during lunch, and had eaten his rolls quickly. Arin felt guilt strike him as he recalled stealing a roll from his friend. It really hadn’t been fair; Arin hadn’t finished his own rolls (octopus, something Dan absolutely did not like because of the tentacles), and as the younger man walked backwards through his mind, he remembered that Danny had subtly pulled his food closer to his chest as he ate the rest.

That was…awfully protective, like a wolf guarding its kill. Not at all like warm, giggly Dan, who did not object when his friends stole food from his plate, even joking about how he there was a reason he could never finish his food.

Danny probably hadn’t even realized he’d pulled his food out of reach. Arin frowned, thinking that if Dan had since become aware of it, he’d probably feel bad when he didn’t need to. After all, the older man had a right to actually finish his food when he wanted to!

As Arin replaced the batteries successfully and prepared the dead ones for recycling, his frown deepened. All of these things were beginning to add up…in a really bad way. Why else would Danny be carrying an exhaustion he couldn’t shake, be suspiciously quiet both during episodes and in everyday interaction, and be possessive over his food?

Arin smacked his head. “Idiot,” he muttered to himself, heading to the kitchen. He was aware Dan’s stomach had forced him, yet again, to change the way he was eating. One of the major things the musician had mentioned was having to rearrange the times he would eat dinner in the evenings. If Dan could only have the “early bird special,” as he’d called it, then surely, he’d be hungry—and unable to eat—after the concerts let out each night!

Arin felt a right idiot for not noticing sooner, and he silently berated himself as he dutifully made Dan a truly epic turkey sandwich.

~

Cautiously, Arin opened the door to his own office. Dan was an extremely light sleeper, even when he was completely exhausted, and he didn’t want to wake him up. He managed to get the door closed behind him without much incident, thankfully, and he slowly entered the room, setting the plate down on his desk.

Danny was fast asleep, clearly dead to the world. His sleep was deep, but not without its troubles. As Arin watched, his friend would shift slightly in his sleep, brow furrowing, before he settled down again. The discomfort could, of course, be attributed to Dan having some sort of sleep paralysis dream, but somehow, Arin doubted this was the case.

As Arin settled into his chair, he could hear, even from some distance away, the groans and moans of a very clearly empty and displeased stomach, and the more the grumbles persisted, the more Danny twitched himself, letting out soft sounds of discomfort. 

Arin found himself faced with a dilemma. On the one hand, he wanted to just leave Dan alone to sleep, but on the other hand, his friend was clearly starving, badly in need of food. The younger man bit his lower lip in sympathy. Dan had some kind of willpower, to stay hungry like that for so long. Willpower…or stupidity.

In the end, Arin didn’t have to make a choice, because Dan woke up during the tail-end of a particularly loud growl from his stomach, wincing and rubbing at his sore abdomen as he slowly came to. 

Danny glanced over and saw Arin. He’d been having a pleasant sleep…that is, until his belly began to intervene. He smiled weakly. “How long have you been watching me sleep, you weirdo?”

“Long enough,” Arin replied, with only a hint of humor. “Dan…why didn’t you tell me you were hungry? You’re allowed to take breaks, you know.”

Dan shrugged. “Dunno. I just wanted to get some work done. We need more episodes, since our backlog is pretty empty.” He giggled. “Kinda like my stomach. Woof. I need to go get food, Ar. I don’t think I can do another episode until I eat something.”

There was something so shy in the way Danny finally admitted to needing food that broke Arin’s heart. He shoved the sandwich towards Dan. “Here. Eat.”

Curious, Dan sat up and took the plate, inhaling the scent of the food and groaning in delight. “Oooh…turkey and mayo. You read my fucking mind, dude.” He lifted one half of the sandwich to his lips and took a huge bite, groaning as he chewed. “Oh, fuck, that’s good.”

After a moment of silence, Arin spoke again. “I’m sorry I didn’t see the signs. I should know by now, what they look like.”

“What signs?” Dan asked, mouth full.

Arin smiled sadly, looking at his hands. “Your burnout signs.”

“Oh,” Dan said quietly as he swallowed. After a moment, he looked up. “I…I don’t think I would’ve…burned out, per se. I was just…really, really fucking hungry.”

“I would’ve burned out,” Arin pointed out. “Holy shit, dude.”

“Aww shit, dude,” Danny intoned, chuckling as Arin began to laugh. “Yeah, it’s pretty bad. I just need to eat a shit-ton of carbs, though. Then, I’ll feel better.”

“You can bet I’m gonna be watching you, mister,” Arin teased.

Dan giggled. “Wouldn’t have it any other way, Big Cat.”

**Author's Note:**

> Shamelessly referencing a line by TheseusInTheMaze: "Dan was getting to the point in the year where he looked like death warmed over, and if he didn't try to slow down a bit more often, he would probably give himself a heart attack or, at the very least, a nervous break down." 
> 
> Oops...


End file.
